The Stranglers: Eastern Front (Cleavland, 1978)

So, like so many bands that flushed to fame in the late seventies, The Stranglers (more here) would have to grow up in public. Unlike The Jam, The Damned and The Clash, there would be no sophomore slump (No More Heroes being an indisputable classic) but then there would be no need of a third album comeback on the scale of All Mod Cons, Machine Gun Etiquette or London Calling either. Instead, The Strangler began a wildly unpredictable career trajectory that held some fearsome works and some yawn-inducing ones.



By 1978's Black and White, The Stranglers had grown more belligerent and less tuneful, though the album is still a fan fave. Live, the '78 version of the band sounded like a cross between The Doors and The Ramones as they rammed through their catalog with incredible velocity and veracity. To hear the band at their most bludgeoning stage, don't miss this bloody-sounding bootleg of a show at The Agora Ballroom in Cleveland, Ohio in 1978.



1. Threatened.
2. Burning up time.
3. Straighten out.
4. London lady.
5. Down in the sewer.
6. Five minutes.
7. Toiler on the sea.
8. Grip.
9. Dagenham Dave.
10. Bring on the nubiles.
11. Dead ringer.
12. Hanging around.
13. Nice 'n sleazy.
14. No more heroes.
15. Tank.

So what do you think of Black and White era Stranglers? Let us know in the comments!

Speaking of comments, that is the section wherein you will find Eastern Front link (though you have to scroll down to the second comment).


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